Dental fear refers to the fear of dentistry and of receiving dental care. It is estimated that as many as 75% of US adults experience some degree of dental fear, from mild to severe. It is further estimated that some 5 to 10 percent of U.S. adult dental patients are considered to experience dental phobia wherein they become so fearful of receiving dental treatment that they avoid dental they have a dental emergency, such as a toothache or dental abscess. Women tend to report more dental fear than men, and younger people tend to report being more dentally fearful than older individuals. In addition People tend to report being more fearful of more invasive procedures, such as oral surgery which require anesthesia in order to manage pain, than they are of less painful treatments, such as professional dental cleanings, or prophylaxis.
Direct experience is the most common way people develop dental fears. Significant numbers of people report that dental fear is related to painful dental experience. Often a painful experience begins with administration of a local anesthetic via injection into very sensitive oral tissue, such as gum tissue. Once anesthesia is administered, patient pain may be controlled and proper dental care may be carried out.
What is needed therefore is a way to easily administer at least a first dose of local anesthesia in a manner which does not induce pain to the patient and therefore decrease the incidence of patient pain and patient anxiety.
Traditionally, oral dissolving films have not been helpful to address this problem. Although oral dissolving films have been known to be placed on a patient's tongue or any oral mucosal tissue. Such films are for systemic delivery of an active agent, entering the blood stream via the digestive track.